Means for supporting electrodes in ionic tubes



HHIIIIIF I l Wham,

Patented Feb. 17, 1920.

FREDERICK PERCY DRIVER, OF LONDON, EIQ'GLAE'D, .ASSIGNOB T0 OSB-AE-BOBKE'FSCN Lm wonxs, LIMITED. 01' Lonnon, ENGLAND.

MEANS FOR SUPPOBTIN G ELECTBODEE IN IONIC TUBES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 17, 1920.

Application-filed June 89, 191a; Serial No. 242,518.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDERICK PERCY DRIVER, a subject of the King of: Great Britain, residing at London, England, have invented new and useful Means for Support ing Electrodes in Ionic Tubes, ofwhich the following is a specification.

This invention relates to means for sup- Q porting electrodes within ionic tubes such as are used more particularly in wireless telegraphy, and has for object to provide, n combination with a substantially cylindn- .cal anode, improved supportilng means therefor adapted to obviate the chief diificulties incidental to the methods and devices heretofore usually employed for a similar purpose.

According to the present invention the anode cylinder, which is supported from both ends of the ionic tube, is provided at each end with a set of longitudinally-extending carrier-bars attached on the one hand to the anode cylinder and on the other hand to a metal collar which is received in an annular seating formed within the tube at or near the point where the corresponding neck of the tube opens into the bulb; the seatings at the respective ends of the tube being of such diameter relatively to the adjacent necks as to present, endwlse, oppositely-directed annular shoulders adapted to prevent longitudinal displacement of the anode and its attached supports in either direction after their insertion in position, while lateral displacement is prevented by the engagement of the collars with the inner peripheries of the seatings, with which one or both of the collars may be adapted to establish expanding spring contact.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of anionic tube illus trating the mode of supporting a cylindrical anode therein in accordance with the present invention, a portion of each end of the tube being in section, whilethe cathode and its supports are omitted. Figs. 2, 3 and 4 are separate edge views of three different forms of collar constituting partof the anode support; and Fig. 5 is a detail of a portion of the collar shown in Fig. 4.

Referring to Fig. 1 and to the form of collar illustrated 1n Fig. '2, it will be seen that the anode cylinder a has riveted to it,

near each of its ends, a set of three light metal carrier-bars b which are equallI-y spaced around the circumference -of the cy inder, the bars of the two sets, which respectively extend lengthwise of the cylinder axis in opposite directions, being riveted by their divergent outer ends a to two collars d, d each constituted by a split cylindrical band of elastic sheet metal which tends to expand toan efl'ective diameter greater than that of the corresponding annular seating provided for it; in the tube. Each neck e ofthe tube has an internal diameter sufficient to give assage to the' anode cylinder a, and is joine to the, corresponding end of the bulb f by a short cylindrical enlargement g which opens directly into the bulb and, at its junction with the neck, presents a shoulderh; the distance between the shoulders h, h at the res ective ends of the bulb corresponding to t e total length of the anode-structure constituted by the anode cylinder (1 with its carrier-bars b, c, and collars d, d, so that on com ressing or contracting the collars d, d sudiciently to permit of their passingthrough one of the necks e, the entire anode-structure may be slipped lengthwise into its required position within the tube, wherein it will be securely" retained by the elastic expansion of the now released collars d, d within the respective neck enlargements 9, gr.

In order, when the anode-structure has been placed in position, to prevent such accidental contraction in the diameter of the collars d, d (e. g. in consequence of jarring or vibration) as might result in displacement of theanode-structure, the ends of the split cylindrical band constituting a collar may, after the expansion of the collar within its annular seating, be locked together, as for example by means of a headed stud j fixed near the one end engaging in a keyhole-slot is provided near the other end of the band, as in Figs. 4 and 5.

If desired, a collar, instead of being split as above described, may be constituted, as shown at Z in Fig. 3, by a permanently closed annulus of less external diameter than the bore of the corresponding neck e: a series of (say, three) outwardly-extending elastic tongues m being formed upon or attached to the collar 1 so as, on the one hand, to be capable of being compressed to permit introduction of the collar into the neck of the spring outward against the inner periphery I tube and, on the other hand, to be adapted to of the neck-enlargement g.

In some cases, as for example where the or where it is tube has only a single neck,

the

desired to make the neck at one'end of 'tube of smaller bore than would 'be convenient for giving passage to the anode cylinder, the annular seating at the end remote from that neck through which the anode structure is to be entered may be of so much smaller diameter-than the seating at the entering end, as to permit of the correspondin smaller collar beingm-ade capable of being passed through the enterin out contraction. In such cases e collar of smaller diameter may be apermanentl closed annulus adapted to fit closely wit in its seating in the corresponding neck enlargement, either with or without the employment of spring tongues or equivalent devices, whereas the collar of larger effective diameter, which is at the oposite end, may be made capable of a substantial amount of contraction and of bein sprung intoposition as previously Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is 1. Means for supporting a substantiallycylindrical anode in an ionic tube, comprising two sets of longitudinally extending carrier-bars attached to the anode at its opposite ends and respectively extending therefrom in opposite directions, and metal collars attached to the outer ends of the respective sets of carrier-bars and adapted to,

neck with- 7 be received in annular seatin formed within the tube at the correspon in ends of the latter, substantially as set forti.

2. Means for supporting a substantiall cylindrical anode in an ionic tube, as claimed in claim 1, wherein the metal collar attached to the outer ends of a set of carrier-bars is constituted by a, split cylindrical band of elastic sheet metal which tends to expand to an efl'e'ctive diameter greater than that of the corresponding annular seating provided for it in the tube, substantially as described.

3. Means for supporting a substantially cylindrical anode in an ionic tube, as claimed in claim 2, wherein the ends of the split cylindrical band constituting a collar are provided with devices for enabling them to be locked together after the expansion of the collar within its annular seating, substantially as described.

4. An ionic tube for use with supporting means fora substantially cylindrical anode,

said ionic tube having at 1ts ends annular seatings adapted to receive the metal collars attached to the corresponding outer ends of the respective sets of anode carrier-bars and to present, endwise, oppositely-directed annular shoulders for preventing longitudinal displacement of the anode-structure as a Whole, substantially as set forth.

5. An ionic tube as claimed in claim 4, I

I FREDERICK PERCY DRIVER. 

